Art Community Continued
In "Solutions Through Community" I suggested several disconnects between the ideal of a creative community and the reality of the current state of Christian art.
Community should be an obvious answer to the first issue mentioned, that of forgoing formal education in the arts. An artist can learn a great deal about their craft on their own by studying other artists that they connect with and trying to draw things out of what they observe and incorporating those things into their own art. It is a practice and habit that I encourage strongly, but it can be a bit of a buckshot approach to growth and can often encourage more imitation than fully creative expression. Derek Webb states it well in "Mockingbird" by saying "I am like a mockingbird. I have no new song to sing. I am like an amplifier. I just tell you what I've heard, just like a mockingbird."
Part of the issue is that a great number of artists outside of the formal setting, do not have relationships with other artists, at least not relationships that challenge them to grow. Often, artists are of a temperament that leads easily to solitude. In that solitude, expression finds the space to roam freely. Part of the craft of creativity though is a phase (or several phases) of rewrite/revision. If that phase is done in isolation, we shouldn't be surprised if we don't venture far from what we've already discovered. If we are in relationship with people that we trust to give critical, but loving, feedback, they may just give us more tools to help our efforts delve into new territories of expression. This can only help us to continue to grow in our craft.
A difficulty that I've seen though is that those trusted, critical relationships are difficult to find. Often, we're stuck in an endless cycle of seeking affirmation from one another and are afraid that if we offer something other than positive reinforcement that it will not be received and, in turn, it will not be given back to us. I believe that it should be a Proverbs 27:17 "As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another" kind of relationship. It is from other artists that the most helpful, and constructive feedback comes from. Encouragement from the people you are in community with is valuable whether they are artists or not, but it is rare that feedback that pushes you to become better in your craft comes from people who are not a part of the creative process as well.
So, how do we foster connection and community between artists? It's a question that I would like to continue to address, but I would really like to hear from you. If you are engaged in artistic community with others or if you have ideas about how it could happen, please feel free to join in the dialogue by leaving a comment.
Community should be an obvious answer to the first issue mentioned, that of forgoing formal education in the arts. An artist can learn a great deal about their craft on their own by studying other artists that they connect with and trying to draw things out of what they observe and incorporating those things into their own art. It is a practice and habit that I encourage strongly, but it can be a bit of a buckshot approach to growth and can often encourage more imitation than fully creative expression. Derek Webb states it well in "Mockingbird" by saying "I am like a mockingbird. I have no new song to sing. I am like an amplifier. I just tell you what I've heard, just like a mockingbird."
Part of the issue is that a great number of artists outside of the formal setting, do not have relationships with other artists, at least not relationships that challenge them to grow. Often, artists are of a temperament that leads easily to solitude. In that solitude, expression finds the space to roam freely. Part of the craft of creativity though is a phase (or several phases) of rewrite/revision. If that phase is done in isolation, we shouldn't be surprised if we don't venture far from what we've already discovered. If we are in relationship with people that we trust to give critical, but loving, feedback, they may just give us more tools to help our efforts delve into new territories of expression. This can only help us to continue to grow in our craft.
A difficulty that I've seen though is that those trusted, critical relationships are difficult to find. Often, we're stuck in an endless cycle of seeking affirmation from one another and are afraid that if we offer something other than positive reinforcement that it will not be received and, in turn, it will not be given back to us. I believe that it should be a Proverbs 27:17 "As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another" kind of relationship. It is from other artists that the most helpful, and constructive feedback comes from. Encouragement from the people you are in community with is valuable whether they are artists or not, but it is rare that feedback that pushes you to become better in your craft comes from people who are not a part of the creative process as well.
So, how do we foster connection and community between artists? It's a question that I would like to continue to address, but I would really like to hear from you. If you are engaged in artistic community with others or if you have ideas about how it could happen, please feel free to join in the dialogue by leaving a comment.
posted by notsilent1 at
3:15 AM
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